Matt often takes one look at my breakfast bowl and asks who invited the birds to eat with us this morning. Yesterday, I opened up my ‘baking’ cupboard (it’s where I hide the good chocolate) and understood why. Unmarked, miscellaneous brown paper bags and jars filled with nuts and seeds. Too many types of flour that I know what to do with (anybody have a recipe for millet flour?) and various honeys, syrups, and nut butters. Given enough pine cones I could probably make enough bird feeders to provoke a mass migration. But this granola? I’d hide that away with the dark chocolate.
I work at a café where I make large batches of granola, weighed out in grams and measured oh so precisely to be packaged up and sold – if you are ever in town, stop by and say hi! I love making granola, I wish I could bottle up the smell and use it as perfume. But when Matt and I aren’t eating leftover batches from work, I like to go off the grid a bit and make my own au piff. Live life dangerously I say. So when I was cleaning out my cupboards, I decided to make a big ol’ batch of pantry dump granola. Sweetened with apricots and clumped together with crunchy buckwheat. Buckwheat (not actually wheat but a seed!) is a nice addition to any granola combination, it has a subtle nutty flavor and gives really great crunch. Use raw buckwheat groats, greenish in color, which can be found with rice and other grains in most health food stores. You can also find buckwheat in a form similar to oats, buckwheat flakes, which I love using in this recipe.I measured the amounts of seeds and nuts for all y’all, but the actual seeds and nuts are totally up to you. Use whatever is kicking around that pantry of yours. As long as you follow the same dry/wet ingredient ratio, you should have some pretty tasty granola on your hands. Serve on top of your favorite yogurt, sprinkle over a smoothie or eat as a snack right out of the jar. Keep out of reach of birds and boyfriends alike.
BUCKWHEAT GRANOLA WITH APRICOTS + COCONUT
Crunchy, filling and sweetened with a simple homemade apricot syrup. A pantry dump of seeds and nuts always makes the best homemade granola. Baking on a lower temperature for a little bit longer yields the best toasty flavor. Vegan and Gluten Free. Makes about 7 cups.
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups raw whole buckwheat, buckwheat groats (not kasha, thats already been toasted)
2 cups rolled oats (use gluten free certified if your intolerant, or buckwheat flakes!)
1 1/2 cup seeds (I used sunflower, sesame, flax, and pumpkin seeds)
1 cup nuts (I used hazelnuts), roughly chopped
1 cup large coconut flakes
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
Pinch flaky sea salt
1 cup organic dried apricots
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup coconut or olive oil
2 tablespoons wildflower honey (choose something local if you can)
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 150 C / 300 F
Chop the dried apricots and place in a small saucepan with the water over medium/low heat. Simmer gently until most of the liquid has been absorbed and the apricots are soft and breaking up. Remove from heat and stir in oil and honey, set aside.
In a large bowl combine all the dry ingredient, then pour over the apricot syrup, mix with a wooden spoon (hands work well too) until well combined.
Spread in an even thin layer on a baking sheet and bake in the oven for 30-35 minutes, until well toasted, stirring every ten minutes or so so it doesn’t burn. Remove and let cool completely before storing in an airtight jar. Will keep for a few weeks.
Let me in on your kitchen creations – tag your photos #happyheartedkitchen and share the love!
14 Comments
Melissa @ Nourish By Melissa
March 16, 2014 at 9:04 pmThis looks delicious! I’ve been on a major granola kick this week since my blender broke, meaning no more smoothies :( I may just have to add this to the list of granolas to try! :)
Jodi Kay
March 18, 2014 at 6:52 amThanks, Melissa! Hope you get a blender back soon! In the meantime, enjoy all the granolas! J x
shelley ludman
March 16, 2014 at 9:28 pmProbably the best opening line ever. I have such a wonderful visual of Matt peering over your shoulder and muttering those words. Love it! Stunning photos too lady xx
Cheri Savory Spoon
March 18, 2014 at 12:46 amOh I love everything about this recipe, beautiful presentation!
Jodi Kay
March 18, 2014 at 6:52 amThanks, Cheri! J x
Yvonne
March 19, 2014 at 6:24 pmLooks delicious – and I just bought some buckwheat! For millet flour, I recommend looking through “Good to the Grain,” if you can get your hands on it. It has recipes for all kinds of flours!
Jodi Kay
March 20, 2014 at 6:20 amOh thanks, Yvonne! Looks like a gorgeous cookbook, thanks for the recommendation! J x
Matthew @ Lasik for Your Surgeon
March 23, 2014 at 10:10 pmEpicness!
cynthia | two red bowls
March 26, 2014 at 12:07 amBeautiful photos! This looks delicious. :)
Jodi Kay
March 27, 2014 at 8:54 amThank you, Cynthia! :)
Katie
April 5, 2014 at 6:48 pmHi Jodi, My sister just sent me your link and I’ve had such fun seeing a little glimpse of what you’re up to! I’m in Berlin now and am trying to satifsy my love of cooking while learning to shop in a different country…2 years here and some things I still can’t get used to…I have been missing a good granola and plan to give this one a try this week. Congrats on this blog and I hope you continue to enjoy both cooking and writing!
Katie Thomson xoox
Jodi Kay
April 6, 2014 at 6:07 pmHi Katie! Thank you so much! So fun to hear from you! Its fun, yet sometimes frustrating getting used to knew ingredients and cooking in another country, its basically why I started this blog when I moved to France! If you make this, I hope it satisfies your granola cravings! Hope all is well in Berlin. Big hug x
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